Breaking bad nucleotides: understanding the regulatory mechanisms of bacterial small alarmone hydrolases

Guanosine tetra- and pentaphosphate nucleotides, (p)ppGpp, function as central secondary messengers and alarmones in bacterial cell biology, signalling a range of stress conditions, including nutrient starvation and exposure to cell-wall-targeting antibiotics, and are critical for survival. While activation of the stringent response and alarmone synthesis on starved ribosomes by members of the RSH (Rel) class of proteins is well understood, much less is known about how single-domain small alarmone synthetases (SASs) and their corresponding alarmone hydrolases, the small alarmone hydrolases (SAHs), are regulated and contribute to (p)ppGpp homeostasis. The substrate spectrum of these enzymes has recently been expanded to include hyperphosphorylated adenosine nucleotides, suggesting that they take part in a highly complex and interconnected signalling network. In this review, we provide an overview of our understanding of the SAHs and discuss their structure, function, regulation, and phylogeny.

Complete Loss of RelA and SpoT Homologs in Arabidopsis Reveals the Importance of the Plastidial Stringent Response in the Interplay between Chloroplast Metabolism and Plant Defense Response

The highly phosphorylated nucleotide, guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp), functions as a secondary messenger in bacteria and chloroplasts. The accumulation of ppGpp alters plastidial gene expression and metabolism, which are required for proper photosynthetic regulation and robust plant growth. However, because four plastid-localized ppGpp synthases/hydrolases function redundantly, the impact of the loss of ppGpp-dependent stringent response on plant physiology remains unclear. We used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to generate an Arabidopsis thaliana mutant lacking all four ppGpp synthases/hydrolases and characterized its phenotype. The mutant showed over 20-fold less ppGpp levels than the wild type under normal growth conditions and exhibited leaf chlorosis and increased expression of defense-related genes as well as salicylic acid and jasmonate levels upon transition to nitrogen-starvation conditions. These results demonstrate that proper levels of ppGpp in plastids are required for controlling not only plastid metabolism but also phytohormone signaling, which is essential for plant defense.

Guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp) is a new player in Brassica napus L. seed development

Rapeseed oil, constituting 12% of global vegetable oil production, is susceptible to quality degradation due to stress-induced incomplete seed degreening, fatty acid oxidation, or poor nutrient accumulation. We hypothesise that the hyperphosphorylated nucleotide alarmone ppGpp (guanosine tetraphosphate), acts as a pivotal regulator of these processes, given its established roles in nutrient management, degreening, and ROS regulation in leaves. Using qPCR, UHPLC-MS/MS, and biochemical methods, our study delves into the impact of ppGpp on seed nutritional value. We observed a positive correlation between ppGpp levels and desiccation, and a negative correlation with photosynthetic pigment levels. Trends in antioxidant activity suggest that ppGpp may negatively influence peroxidases, which are safeguarding against chlorophyll decomposition. Notably, despite increasing ppGpp levels, sugars, proteins and oils appear unaffected. This newfound role of ppGpp in seed development suggests it regulates the endogenous antioxidant system during degreening and desiccation, preserving nutritional quality. Further validation through mutant-based research is needed.

Trichoderma viride Colonizes the Roots of Brassica napus L., Alters the Expression of Stress-Responsive Genes, and Increases the Yield of Canola under Field Conditions during Drought

In this work, we present the results of the inoculation of canola seeds (Brassica napus L.) with Trichoderma viride strains that promote the growth of plants. Seven morphologically different strains of T. viride (TvI-VII) were shown to be capable of synthesizing auxins and exhibited cellulolytic and pectinolytic activities. To gain a deeper insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying canola-T. viride interactions, we analyzed the canola stress genes metallothioneins (BnMT1-3) and stringent response genes (BnRSH1-3 and BnCRSH). We demonstrated the presence of cis-regulatory elements responsive to fungal elicitors in the promoter regions of B. napus MT and RSH genes and observed changes in the levels of the transcripts of the above-mentioned genes in response to root colonization by the tested fungal strains. Of the seven tested strains, under laboratory conditions, T. viride VII stimulated the formation of roots and the growth of canola seedlings to the greatest extent. An experiment conducted under field conditions during drought showed that the inoculation of canola seeds with a suspension of T. viride VII spores increased yield by 16.7%. There was also a positive effect of the fungus on the height and branching of the plants, the number of siliques, and the mass of a thousand seeds. We suggest that the T. viride strain TvVII can be used in modern sustainable agriculture as a bioinoculant and seed coating to protect B. napus from drought.

Bacterial Pathogen Infection Triggers Magic Spot Nucleotide Signaling in Arabidopsis thaliana Chloroplasts through Specific RelA/SpoT Homologues

Magic spot nucleotides (p)ppGpp are important signaling molecules in bacteria and plants. In the latter, RelA-SpoT homologue (RSH) enzymes are responsible for (p)ppGpp turnover. Profiling of (p)ppGpp is more difficult in plants than in bacteria due to lower concentrations and more severe matrix effects. Here, we report that capillary electrophoresis mass spectrometry (CE-MS) can be deployed to study (p)ppGpp abundance and identity in Arabidopsis thaliana. This goal is achieved by combining a titanium dioxide extraction protocol and pre-spiking with chemically synthesized stable isotope-labeled internal reference compounds. The high sensitivity and separation efficiency of CE-MS enables monitoring of changes in (p)ppGpp levels in A. thaliana upon infection with the pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (PstDC3000). We observed a significant increase of ppGpp post infection that is also stimulated by the flagellin peptide flg22 only. This increase depends on functional flg22 receptor FLS2 and its interacting kinase BAK1 indicating that pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) receptor-mediated signaling controls ppGpp levels. Transcript analyses showed an upregulation of RSH2 upon flg22 treatment and both RSH2 and RSH3 after PstDC3000 infection. Arabidopsis mutants deficient in RSH2 and RSH3 activity display no ppGpp accumulation upon infection and flg22 treatment, supporting the involvement of these synthases in PAMP-triggered innate immune responses to pathogens within the chloroplast.

New perspectives on the molecular mechanisms of stress signalling by the nucleotide guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp), an emerging regulator of photosynthesis in plants and algae

The nucleotides guanosine tetraphosphate and guanosine pentaphosphate (together (p)ppGpp) are found in a wide range of prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms where they are associated with stress signalling. In this review, we will discuss recent research highlighting the role of (p)ppGpp signalling as a conserved regulator of photosynthetic activity in the chloroplasts of plants and algae, and the latest discoveries that open up new perspectives on the emerging roles of (p)ppGpp in acclimation to environmental stress. We explore how rapid advances in the study of (p)ppGpp signalling in prokaryotes are now revealing large gaps in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of signalling by (p)ppGpp and related nucleotides in plants and algae. Filling in these gaps is likely to lead to the discovery of conserved as well as new plant- and algal-specific (p)ppGpp signalling mechanisms that will offer new insights into the taming of the chloroplast and the regulation of stress tolerance.

The Importance of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agriculture-A Review

In the face of climate change, progressive degradation of the environment, including agricultural land negatively affecting plant growth and development, endangers plant productivity. Seeking efficient and sustainable agricultural techniques to replace agricultural chemicals is one of the most important challenges nowadays. The use of plant growth-promoting microorganisms is among the most promising approaches; however, molecular mechanisms underneath plant-microbe interactions are still poorly understood. In this review, we summarized the knowledge on plant-microbe interactions, highlighting the role of microbial and plant proteins and metabolites in the formation of symbiotic relationships. This review covers rhizosphere and phyllosphere microbiomes, the role of root exudates in plant-microorganism interactions, the functioning of the plant's immune system during the plant-microorganism interactions. We also emphasized the possible role of the stringent response and the evolutionarily conserved mechanism during the established interaction between plants and microorganisms. As a case study, we discussed fungi belonging to the genus Trichoderma. Our review aims to summarize the existing knowledge about plant-microorganism interactions and to highlight molecular pathways that need further investigation.

Regulation of ppGpp Synthesis and Its Impact on Chloroplast Biogenesis during Early Leaf Development in Rice

Guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp) is known as an alarmone that mediates bacterial stress responses. In plants, ppGpp is synthesized in chloroplasts from GTP and ATP and functions as a regulator of chloroplast gene expression to affect photosynthesis and plant growth. This observation indicates that ppGpp metabolism is closely related to chloroplast function, but the regulation of ppGpp and its role in chloroplast differentiation are not well understood. In rice, ppGpp directly inhibits plastidial guanylate kinase (GKpm), a key enzyme in GTP biosynthesis. GKpm is highly expressed during early leaf development in rice, and the GKpm-deficient mutant, virescent-2 (v2), develops chloroplast-deficient chlorotic leaves under low-temperature conditions. To examine the relationship between GTP synthesis and ppGpp homeostasis, we generated transgenic rice plants over-expressing RSH3, a protein known to act as a ppGpp synthase. When RSH3 was overexpressed in v2, the leaf chlorosis was more severe. Although the RSH3 overexpression in the wild type caused no visible effects, pulse amplitude modulation fluorometer measurements indicated that photosynthetic rates were reduced in this line. This finding implies that the regulation of ppGpp synthesis in rice is involved in the maintenance of the GTP pool required to regulate plastid gene expression during early chloroplast biogenesis. We further investigated changes in the expressions of RelA/SpoT Homolog (RSH) genes encoding ppGpp synthases and hydrolases during the same period. Comparing the expression of these genes with the cellular ppGpp content suggests that the basal ppGpp level is determined by the antagonistic action of multiple RSH enzymatic activities during early leaf development in rice.

Metabolic changes contributing to large biomass production in the Arabidopsis ppGpp-accumulating mutant under nitrogen deficiency

The Arabidopsis ppGpp-overproducing mutant indicates a larger biomass than wild type by modulated amino-acid metabolism under nitrogen-limiting conditions. The regulatory nucleotide, guanosine 3', 5'-bis(pyrophosphate; ppGpp)-originally identified in Escherichia coli-controls gene expression and enzyme activities in the bacteria and plastids of plant cells. We recently reported that the ppGpp over-producing mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana had a larger shoot weight than wild type (WT), especially under nutrient-deficient conditions. However, the mechanisms behind the influence of ppGpp on plant growth and biomass remain elusive. To understand the impact of the ppGpp accumulation on plant growth, we characterized metabolic changes in the ppGpp-overproducing mutant upon transition from nitrogen-rich to nitrogen-limiting concentrations. We found that the fresh weight of the mutant was significantly larger than WT when the total nitrogen source (KNO₃ and NH₄NO₃) concentration was below 0.9 mM. When the nitrogen content in the medium decreased, aromatic and branched-chain amino acids increased in WT due to accelerated protein degradation and/or attenuated protein synthesis. These amino-acid levels in the ppGpp over-accumulating mutant decreased upon nitrogen deficiency. The results suggest that the ppGpp-overaccumulation affects amino-acid and protein homeostasis and facilitates growth under nitrogen-limiting conditions.

In Silico Study of the RSH (RelA/SpoT Homologs) Gene Family and Expression Analysis in Response to PGPR Bacteria and Salinity in Brassica napus

Among several mechanisms involved in the plant stress response, synthesis of guanosine tetra and pentaphosphates (alarmones), homologous to the bacterial stringent response, is of crucial importance. Plant alarmones affect, among others, photosynthetic activity, metabolite accumulation, and nutrient remobilization, and thus regulate plant growth and development. The plant RSH (RelA/SpoT homolog) genes, that encode synthetases and/or hydrolases of alarmones, have been characterized in a limited number of plant species, e.g., Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, and Ipomoea nil. Here, we used dry-to-wet laboratory research approaches to characterize RSH family genes in the polyploid plant Brassica napus. There are 12 RSH genes in the genome of rapeseed that belong to four types of RSH genes: 6 RSH1, 2 RSH2, 3 RSH3, and 1 CRSH. BnRSH genes contain 13-24 introns in RSH1, 2-6 introns in RSH2, 1-6 introns in RSH3, and 2-3 introns in the CRSH genes. In the promoter regions of the RSH genes, we showed the presence of regulatory elements of the response to light, plant hormones, plant development, and abiotic and biotic stresses. The wet-lab analysis showed that expression of BnRSH genes is generally not significantly affected by salt stress, but that the presence of PGPR bacteria, mostly of Serratia sp., increased the expression of BnRSH significantly. The obtained results show that BnRSH genes are differently affected by biotic and abiotic factors, which indicates their different functions in plants.

Stringent Response in Bacteria and Plants with Infection

Stringent response (SR), a primary stress reaction in bacteria and plant chloroplasts, is a molecular switch that provides operational stress-induced reprogramming of transcription under conditions of abiotic and biotic stress. Because the infection is a stressful situation for both partners (the host plant and the pathogen), we analyzed the expression of bacterial and plastid SR-related genes during plant-microbial interaction. In the phytopathogenic bacterium Pectobacterium atrosepticum, SpoT-dependent SR was induced after contact with potato or tobacco plants. In plants, two different scenarios of molecular events developed under bacterial infection. Plastid SR was not induced in the host plant potato Solanum tuberosum, which co-evolved with the pathogen for a long time. In this case, the salicylic acid defense pathway was activated and plants were more resistant to bacterial infection. SR was activated in the tobacco Nicotiana tabacum (experimental host) along with activation of jasmonic acid-related genes, resulting in plant death. These results are important to more fully understand the evolutionary interactions between plants and symbionts/pathogens.

Regional Heritability Mapping of Quantitative Trait Loci Controlling Traits Related to Growth and Productivity in Popcorn (Zea mays L.)

The method of regional heritability mapping (RHM) has become an important tool in the identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling traits of interest in plants. Here, RHM was first applied in a breeding population of popcorn, to identify the QTLs and candidate genes involved in grain yield, plant height, kernel popping expansion, and first ear height, as well as determining the heritability of each significant genomic region. The study population consisted of 98 S1 families derived from the 9th recurrent selection cycle (C-9) of the open-pollinated variety UENF-14, which were genetically evaluated in two environments (ENV1 and ENV2). Seventeen and five genomic regions were mapped by the RHM method in ENV1 and ENV2, respectively. Subsequent genome-wide analysis based on the reference genome B73 revealed associations with forty-six candidate genes within these genomic regions, some of them are considered to be biologically important due to the proteins that they encode. The results obtained by the RHM method have the potential to contribute to knowledge on the genetic architecture of the growth and yield traits of popcorn, which might be used for marker-assisted selection in breeding programs.

Plastidial (p)ppGpp Synthesis by the Ca2+-Dependent RelA-SpoT Homolog Regulates the Adaptation of Chloroplast Gene Expression to Darkness in Arabidopsis

In bacteria, the hyper-phosphorylated nucleotide, guanosine 3',5'-bis(pyrophosphate) (ppGpp), functions as a secondary messenger under stringent conditions. ppGpp levels are controlled by two distinct enzymes, namely RelA and SpoT, in Escherichia coli. RelA-SpoT homologs (RSHs) are also conserved in plants where they function in the plastids. The model plant Arabidopsis thaliana contains four RSHs: RSH1, RSH2, RSH3 and Ca2+-dependent RSH (CRSH). Genetic characterizations of RSH1, RSH2 and RSH3 were undertaken, which showed that the ppGpp-dependent plastidial stringent response significantly influences plant growth and stress acclimation. However, the physiological significance of CRSH-dependent ppGpp synthesis remains unclear, as no crsh-null mutant has been available. Here, to investigate the function of CRSH, a crsh-knockout mutant of Arabidopsis was constructed using a site-specific gene-editing technique, and its phenotype was characterized. A transient increase in ppGpp was observed for 30 min in the wild type (WT) after the light-to-dark transition, but this increase was not observed in the crsh mutant. Similar analyses were performed with the rsh2-rsh3 double and rsh1-rsh2-rsh3 triple mutants and showed that the transient increments of ppGpp in the mutants were higher than those in the WT. The increase in ppGpp in the WT and rsh2 rsh3 accompanied decrements in the mRNA levels of some plastidial genes transcribed by the plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase. These results indicate that the transient increase in ppGpp at night is due to CRSH-dependent ppGpp synthesis and that the ppGpp level is maintained by the hydrolytic activities of RSH1, RSH2 and RSH3 to accustom plastidial gene expression to darkness.

RSH enzyme diversity for (p)ppGpp metabolism in Phaeodactylum tricornutum and other diatoms

The nucleotides guanosine tetraphosphate and pentaphosphate (together known as (p)ppGpp or magic spot) are produced in plant plastids from GDP/GTP and ATP by RelA-SpoT homologue (RSH) enzymes. In the model plant Arabidopsis (p)ppGpp regulates chloroplast transcription and translation to affect growth, and is also implicated in acclimation to stress. However, little is known about (p)ppGpp metabolism or its evolution in other photosynthetic eukaryotes. Here we studied (p)ppGpp metabolism in the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum. We identified three expressed RSH genes in the P. tricornutum genome, and determined the enzymatic activity of the corresponding enzymes by heterologous expression in bacteria. We showed that two P. tricornutum RSH are (p)ppGpp synthetases, despite substitution of a residue within the active site believed critical for activity, and that the third RSH is a bifunctional (p)ppGpp synthetase and hydrolase, the first of its kind demonstrated in a photosynthetic eukaryote. A broad phylogenetic analysis then showed that diatom RSH belong to novel algal RSH clades. Together our work significantly expands the horizons of (p)ppGpp signalling in the photosynthetic eukaryotes by demonstrating an unexpected functional, structural and evolutionary diversity in RSH enzymes from organisms with plastids derived from red algae.

Identification and characterization of the Ipomoea nil RelA/SpoT Homologs (InRSHs) and potential directions of their transcriptional regulation

Although the stringent response has been known for more than half a century and has been well studied in bacteria, only the research of the past 19 years revealed that the homologous mechanism is conserved in plants. The plant RelA/SpoT Homolog (RSH) genes have been identified and characterized in a limited number of plant species, whereas products of their catalytic activities, (p)ppGpp (alarmones), have been shown to accumulate mainly in chloroplasts. Here, we identified full-length sequences of the Ipomoea nil RSH genes (InRSH1, InRSH2 and InCRSH), determined their copy number in the I. nil genome as well as the structural conservancy between InRSHs and their Arabidopsis and rice orthologs. We showed that InRSHs are differentially expressed in I. nil organ tissues and that only InRSH2 is upregulated in response to salt, osmotic and drought stress. Our results of the E. coli relA/spoT mutant complementation test suggest that InRSH1 is likely a (p)ppGpp hydrolase, InCRSH - synthetase and InRSH2 shows both activities. Finally, we referred our results to the recently published I. nil genomic and proteomic data and uncovered the complexity of the I. nil RSH family as well as potential ways of the InRSH transcriptional regulation.

Green magic: regulation of the chloroplast stress response by (p)ppGpp in plants and algae

The hyperphosphorylated nucleotides guanosine pentaphosphate and tetraphosphate [together referred to as (p)ppGpp, or 'magic spot'] orchestrate a signalling cascade in bacteria that controls growth under optimal conditions and in response to environmental stress. (p)ppGpp is also found in the chloroplasts of plants and algae where it has also been shown to accumulate in response to abiotic stress. Recent studies suggest that (p)ppGpp is a potent inhibitor of chloroplast gene expression in vivo, and is a significant regulator of chloroplast function that can influence both the growth and the development of plants. However, little is currently known about how (p)ppGpp is wired into eukaryotic signalling pathways, or how it may act to enhance fitness when plants or algae are exposed to environmental stress. This review discusses our current understanding of (p)ppGpp metabolism and its extent in plants and algae, and how (p)ppGpp signalling may be an important factor that is capable of influencing growth and stress acclimation in this major group of organisms.

Functional Characterization of a Small Alarmone Hydrolase in Corynebacterium glutamicum

The (pp)pGpp metabolism is an important component of bacterial physiology as it is involved in various stress responses and mechanisms of cell homeostasis, e.g., the regulation of growth. However, in order to better understand the (pp)pGpp associated regulation, it is crucial to study the molecular mechanisms of (pp)pGpp metabolism. In recent years, bioinformatic analyses of the RelA/SpoT homolog (RSH) superfamily have led to the discovery of small monofunctional RSH derivatives in addition to the well-known bifunctional Rel proteins. These are also referred to as small alarmone synthetases (SASs) or small alarmone hydrolases (SAHs). In this study, the ORF cg1485 from C. glutamicum was identified as a putative SAH encoding gene, based on a high similarity of the corresponding amino acid sequence with the (pp)pGpp hydrolysis domain. The characterization of its gene product, designated as RelH_Cg, represents the first functional investigation of a bacterial representative of the SAH subfamily. The predicted pyrophosphohydrolase activity was demonstrated in vivo by expression in two E. coli strains, characterized by different alarmone basal levels, as well as by in vitro analysis of the purified protein. During the assay-based analysis of hydrolysis activity in relation to the three known alarmone species, both RelH_Cg and the bifunctional RSH enzyme Rel_Cg were found to exhibit a pronounced substrate inhibition for alarmone concentrations of more than 0.75 mM. This characteristic of (pp)pGpp hydrolases could be an important mechanism for realizing the bistable character of the (pp)pGpp metabolism between a (pp)pGpp basal level and stress-associated alarmone production. The deletion of relH_Cg caused only a minor effect on growth behavior in both wild-type background and deletion mutants with deletion of (pp)pGpp synthetases. Based on this observation, the protein is probably only present or active under specific environmental conditions. The independent loss of the corresponding gene in numerous representatives of the genus Corynebacterium, which was found by bioinformatic analyses, also supports this hypothesis. Furthermore, growth analysis of all possible deletion combinations of the three active C. glutamicum RSH genes revealed interesting functional relationships which will have to be investigated in more detail in the future.

Significance of accumulation of the alarmone (p)ppGpp in chloroplasts for controlling photosynthesis and metabolite balance during nitrogen starvation in Arabidopsis

The regulatory nucleotides, guanosine 5'-triphosphate 3'-diphosphate (pppGpp) and guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), were originally identified in Escherichia coli, and control a large set of gene expression and enzyme activities. The (p)ppGpp-dependent control of cell activities is referred to as the stringent response. A growing number of (p)ppGpp synthase/hydrolase homologs have been identified in plants, which are localized in plastids in Arabidopsis thaliana. We recently reported that the Arabidopsis mutant overproducing ppGpp in plastids showed dwarf chloroplasts, and transcript levels in the mutant plastids were significantly suppressed. Furthermore, the mutant showed more robust growth than the wild type (WT), especially under nutrient-deficient conditions, although the mechanisms are unclear. To better understand the impact of the ppGpp accumulation on plant responses to nutrient deficiency, photosynthetic activities and metabolic changes in the ppGpp-overproducing mutant were characterized here. Upon transition to the nitrogen-deficient conditions, the mutant showed reduction of ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) contents, and effective and maximum quantum yield of photosystem II compared with WT. The mutant also showed more obvious changes in key metabolite levels including some amino acid contents than WT; similar metabolic change is known to be critical for plants to maintain carbon-nitrogen balance in their cells. These results suggest that artificially overproducing ppGpp modulates the organelle functions that play an important role in controlling photosynthetic performance and metabolite balance during nitrogen starvation.

Guanosine tetraphosphate modulates salicylic acid signalling and the resistance of Arabidopsis thaliana to Turnip mosaic virus

Chloroplasts can act as key players in the perception and acclimatization of plants to incoming environmental signals. A growing body of evidence indicates that chloroplasts play a critical role in plant immunity. Chloroplast function can be regulated by the nucleotides guanosine tetraphosphate and pentaphosphate [(p)ppGpp]. In plants, (p)ppGpp levels increase in response to abiotic stress and to plant hormones which are involved in abiotic and biotic stress signalling. In this study, we analysed the transcriptome of Arabidopsis plants that over-accumulate (p)ppGpp, and unexpectedly found a decrease in the levels of a broad range of transcripts for plant defence and immunity. To determine whether (p)ppGpp is involved in the modulation of plant immunity, we analysed the susceptibility of plants with different levels of (p)ppGpp to Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV) carrying a green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter. We found that (p)ppGpp accumulation was associated with increased susceptibility to TuMV and reduced levels of the defence hormone salicylic acid (SA). In contrast, plants with lower (p)ppGpp levels showed reduced susceptibility to TuMV, and this was associated with the precocious up-regulation of defence-related genes and increased SA content. We have therefore demonstrated a new link between (p)ppGpp metabolism and plant immunity in Arabidopsis.

Structural and mechanistic divergence of the small (p)ppGpp synthetases RelP and RelQ

The nutritional alarmones ppGpp and pppGpp (collectively: (p)ppGpp) are nucleotide-based second messengers enabling bacteria to respond to environmental and stress conditions. Several bacterial species contain two highly homologous (p)ppGpp synthetases named RelP (SAS2, YwaC) and RelQ (SAS1, YjbM). It is established that RelQ forms homotetramers that are subject to positive allosteric regulation by pppGpp, but structural and mechanistic insights into RelP lack behind. Here we present a structural and mechanistic characterization of RelP. In stark contrast to RelQ, RelP is not allosterically regulated by pppGpp and displays a different enzyme kinetic behavior. This discrepancy is evoked by different conformational properties of the guanosine-substrate binding site (G-Loop) of both proteins. Our study shows how minor structural divergences between close homologues result in new functional features during the course of molecular evolution.

Stoichiometric Correlation Analysis: Principles of Metabolic Functionality from Metabolomics Data

Recent advances in metabolomics technologies have resulted in high-quality (time-resolved) metabolic profiles with an increasing coverage of metabolic pathways. These data profiles represent read-outs from often non-linear dynamics of metabolic networks. Yet, metabolic profiles have largely been explored with regression-based approaches that only capture linear relationships, rendering it difficult to determine the extent to which the data reflect the underlying reaction rates and their couplings. Here we propose an approach termed Stoichiometric Correlation Analysis (SCA) based on correlation between positive linear combinations of log-transformed metabolic profiles. The log-transformation is due to the evidence that metabolic networks can be modeled by mass action law and kinetics derived from it. Unlike the existing approaches which establish a relation between pairs of metabolites, SCA facilitates the discovery of higher-order dependence between more than two metabolites. By using a paradigmatic model of the tricarboxylic acid cycle we show that the higher-order dependence reflects the coupling of concentration of reactant complexes, capturing the subtle difference between the employed enzyme kinetics. Using time-resolved metabolic profiles from Arabidopsis thaliana and Escherichia coli, we show that SCA can be used to quantify the difference in coupling of reactant complexes, and hence, reaction rates, underlying the stringent response in these model organisms. By using SCA with data from natural variation of wild and domesticated wheat and tomato accession, we demonstrate that the domestication is accompanied by loss of such couplings, in these species. Therefore, application of SCA to metabolomics data from natural variation in wild and domesticated populations provides a mechanistic way to understanding domestication and its relation to metabolic networks.

Within and beyond the stringent response-RSH and (p)ppGpp in plants

Plant RSH proteins are able to synthetize and/or hydrolyze unusual nucleotides called (p)ppGpp or alarmones. These molecules regulate nuclear and chloroplast transcription, chloroplast translation and plant development and stress response. Homologs of bacterial RelA/SpoT proteins, designated RSH, and products of their activity, (p)ppGpp-guanosine tetra-and pentaphosphates, have been found in algae and higher plants. (p)ppGpp were first identified in bacteria as the effectors of the stringent response, a mechanism that orchestrates pleiotropic adaptations to nutritional deprivation and various stress conditions. (p)ppGpp accumulation in bacteria decreases transcription-with exception to genes that help to withstand or overcome current stressful situations, which are upregulated-and translation as well as DNA replication and eventually reduces metabolism and growth but promotes adaptive responses. In plants, RSH are nuclei-encoded and function in chloroplasts, where alarmones are produced and decrease transcription, translation, hormone, lipid and metabolites accumulation and affect photosynthetic efficiency and eventually plant growth and development. During senescence, alarmones coordinate nutrient remobilization and relocation from vegetative tissues into seeds. Despite the high conservancy of RSH protein domains among bacteria and plants as well as the bacterial origin of plant chloroplasts, in plants, unlike in bacteria, (p)ppGpp promote chloroplast DNA replication and division. Next, (p)ppGpp may also perform their functions in cytoplasm, where they would promote plant growth inhibition. Furthermore, (p)ppGpp accumulation also affects nuclear gene expression, i.a., decreases the level of Arabidopsis defense gene transcripts, and promotes plants susceptibility towards Turnip mosaic virus. In this review, we summarize recent findings that show the importance of RSH and (p)ppGpp in plant growth and development, and open an area of research aiming to understand the function of plant RSH in response to stress.

Identification and Functional Characterization of Small Alarmone Synthetases in Corynebacterium glutamicum

The hyperphosphorylated guanosine derivatives ppGpp and pppGpp represent global regulators of the bacterial stress response, as they act as central elements of the stringent response system. Although it was assumed that both, (p)ppGpp synthesis and hydrolysis, are catalyzed by one bifunctional RSH-protein in the actinobacterial model organism Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032, two putative short alarmone synthetases (SASs) were identified by bioinformatic analyses. The predicted sequences of both enzymes, designated as RelP^*_Cg and RelS_Cg, exhibit high similarities to the conserved (p)ppGpp synthetase catalytic domain. In the context of sequence analysis, significant differences were found between the RelP variants of different C. glutamicum isolates. In contrast to the bifunctional RelA/SpoT homolog (RSH) protein Rel_Cg, whose gene deletion results in a reduced growth rate, no change in growth characteristics were observed for deletion mutants of the putative SAS proteins under standard growth conditions. The growth deficit of the Δrel strain could be restored by the additional deletion of the gene encoding RelS_Cg, which clearly indicates a functional relationship between both enzymes. The predicted pyrophosphokinase activity of RelS_Cg was demonstrated by means of genetic complementation of an Escherichia coli ΔrelAΔspoT strain. For the expression of RelP^*_Cg, as well as the slightly differing variant RelP_Cg from C. glutamicum AS1.542, no complementation was observed, concluding that both RelP versions possess no significant pyrophosphokinase activity in vivo. The results were confirmed by in vitro characterization of the corresponding proteins. In the course of this investigation, the additional conversion of GMP to pGpp was determined for the enzyme RelS_Cg. Since the SAS species analyzed extend both the network of stringent response related enzymes and the number of substances involved, the study of this class of enzymes is an important component in understanding the bacterial stress response. In addition to the comprehension of important biological processes, such as growth rate regulation and the survival of pathogenic species in the host organism, SAS enzymes can be used to produce novel hyperphosphorylated nucleotide species, such as pGpp.

Phylogenetic analysis of proteins involved in the stringent response in plant cells

The nucleotide (p)ppGpp is a second messenger that controls the stringent response in bacteria. The stringent response modifies expression of a large number of genes and metabolic processes and allows bacteria to survive under fluctuating environmental conditions. Recent genome sequencing analyses have revealed that genes responsible for the stringent response are also found in plants. These include (p)ppGpp synthases and hydrolases, RelA/SpoT homologs (RSHs), and the pppGpp-specific phosphatase GppA/Ppx. However, phylogenetic relationship between enzymes involved in bacterial and plant stringent responses is as yet generally unclear. Here, we investigated the origin and evolution of genes involved in the stringent response in plants. Phylogenetic analysis and primary structures of RSH homologs from different plant phyla (including Embryophyta, Charophyta, Chlorophyta, Rhodophyta and Glaucophyta) indicate that RSH gene families were introduced into plant cells by at least two independent lateral gene transfers from the bacterial Deinococcus-Thermus phylum and an unidentified bacterial phylum; alternatively, they were introduced into a proto-plant cell by a lateral gene transfer from the endosymbiotic cyanobacterium followed by gene loss of an ancestral RSH gene in the cyanobacterial linage. Phylogenetic analysis of gppA/ppx families indicated that plant gppA/ppx homologs form an individual cluster in the phylogenetic tree, and show a sister relationship with some bacterial gppA/ppx homologs. Although RSHs contain a plastidial transit peptide at the N terminus, GppA/Ppx homologs do not, suggesting that plant GppA/Ppx homologs function in the cytosol. These results reveal that a proto-plant cell obtained genes for the stringent response by lateral gene transfer events from different bacterial phyla and have utilized them to control metabolism in plastids and the cytosol.

The stringent response regulates adaptation to darkness in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus

The cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus relies upon photosynthesis to drive metabolism and growth. During darkness, Synechococcus stops growing, derives energy from its glycogen stores, and greatly decreases rates of macromolecular synthesis via unknown mechanisms. Here, we show that the stringent response, a stress response pathway whose genes are conserved across bacteria and plant plastids, contributes to this dark adaptation. Levels of the stringent response alarmone guanosine 3'-diphosphate 5'-diphosphate (ppGpp) rise after a shift from light to dark, indicating that darkness triggers the same response in cyanobacteria as starvation in heterotrophic bacteria. High levels of ppGpp are sufficient to stop growth and dramatically alter many aspects of cellular physiology, including levels of photosynthetic pigments and polyphosphate, DNA content, and the rate of translation. Cells unable to synthesize ppGpp display pronounced growth defects after exposure to darkness. The stringent response regulates expression of a number of genes in Synechococcus, including ribosomal hibernation promoting factor (hpf), which causes ribosomes to dimerize in the dark and may contribute to decreased translation. Although the metabolism of Synechococcus differentiates it from other model bacterial systems, the logic of the stringent response remains remarkably conserved, while at the same time having adapted to the unique stresses of the photosynthetic lifestyle.

Cytosolic ppGpp accumulation induces retarded plant growth and development

In bacteria a second messenger, guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), synthesized upon nutrient starvation, controls many gene expressions and enzyme activities, which is necessary for growth under changeable environments. Recent studies have shown that ppGpp synthase and hydrolase are also conserved in eukaryotes, although their functions are not well understood. We recently showed that ppGpp-overaccumulation in Arabidopsis chloroplasts results in robust growth under nutrient-limited conditions, demonstrating that the bacterial-like stringent response at least functions in plastids. To test if ppGpp also functions in the cytosol, we constructed the transgenic Arabidopsis expressing Bacillus subtilis ppGpp synthase gene yjbM. Upon induction of the gene, the mutant synthesizes ∼10-20-fold higher levels of ppGpp, and its fresh weight was reduced to ˜80% that of the wild type. These results indicate that cytosolic ppGpp negatively regulates plant growth and development.

Impact of the plastidial stringent response in plant growth and stress responses

The regulatory nucleotide guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), which was originally identified in Escherichia coli, controls the expression of a large gene set and many enzyme activities. The ppGpp-dependent control of cell activities is referred to as the stringent response. Recently, genes responsible for the synthesis and degradation of ppGpp have been identified not only in bacteria, but also in eukaryotes, including plants and animals, indicating that the stringent response is, unexpectedly, widely conserved. However, the exact function of the eukaryotic stringent response remains elusive. Here, we isolated an Arabidopsis mutant that overproduces ppGpp in chloroplasts. This mutant shows metabolite reduction, dwarf chloroplasts and significantly suppressed plastidial transcription and translation. Under nutrient-deficient conditions, the mutant shows more robust growth than the wild type. These results indicate that the ppGpp-dependent control of the organelle function is crucial for the systematic growth of host organisms.

Catalytic mechanism and allosteric regulation of an oligomeric (p)ppGpp synthetase by an alarmone

Nucleotide-based second messengers serve in the response of living organisms to environmental changes. In bacteria and plant chloroplasts, guanosine tetraphosphate (ppGpp) and guanosine pentaphosphate (pppGpp) [collectively named "(p)ppGpp"] act as alarmones that globally reprogram cellular physiology during various stress conditions. Enzymes of the RelA/SpoT homology (RSH) family synthesize (p)ppGpp by transferring pyrophosphate from ATP to GDP or GTP. Little is known about the catalytic mechanism and regulation of alarmone synthesis. It also is unclear whether ppGpp and pppGpp execute different functions. Here, we unravel the mechanism and allosteric regulation of the highly cooperative alarmone synthetase small alarmone synthetase 1 (SAS1) from Bacillus subtilis. We determine that the catalytic pathway of (p)ppGpp synthesis involves a sequentially ordered substrate binding, activation of ATP in a strained conformation, and transfer of pyrophosphate through a nucleophilic substitution (SN2) reaction. We show that pppGpp-but not ppGpp-positively regulates SAS1 at an allosteric site. Although the physiological significance remains to be elucidated, we establish the structural and mechanistic basis for a biological activity in which ppGpp and pppGpp execute different functional roles.

Abscisic acid affects transcription of chloroplast genes via protein phosphatase 2C-dependent activation of nuclear genes: repression by guanosine-3'-5'-bisdiphosphate and activation by sigma factor 5

Abscisic acid (ABA) represses the transcriptional activity of chloroplast genes (determined by run-on assays), with the exception of psbD and a few other genes in wild-type Arabidopsis seedlings and mature rosette leaves. Abscisic acid does not influence chloroplast transcription in the mutant lines abi1-1 and abi2-1 with constitutive protein phosphatase 2C (PP2C) activity, suggesting that ABA affects chloroplast gene activity by binding to the pyrabactin resistance (PYR)/PYR1-like or regulatory component of ABA receptor protein family (PYR/PYL/RCAR) and signaling via PP2Cs and sucrose non-fermenting protein-related kinases 2 (SnRK2s). Further we show by quantitative PCR that ABA enhances the transcript levels of RSH2, RSH3, PTF1 and SIG5. RelA/SpoT homolog 2 (RSH2) and RSH3 are known to synthesize guanosine-3'-5'-bisdiphosphate (ppGpp), an inhibitor of the plastid-gene-encoded chloroplast RNA polymerase. We propose, therefore, that ABA leads to an inhibition of chloroplast gene expression via stimulation of ppGpp synthesis. On the other hand, sigma factor 5 (SIG5) and plastid transcription factor 1 (PTF1) are known to be necessary for the transcription of psbD from a specific light- and stress-induced promoter (the blue light responsive promoter, BLRP). We demonstrate that ABA activates the psbD gene by stimulation of transcription initiation at BLRP. Taken together, our data suggest that ABA affects the transcription of chloroplast genes by a PP2C-dependent activation of nuclear genes encoding proteins involved in chloroplast transcription.

A highly sensitive quantification method for the accumulation of alarmone ppGpp in Arabidopsis thaliana using UPLC-ESI-qMS/MS

Recently, a bacterial second messenger, guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), has been detected in chloroplasts. However, because ppGpp concentration in plants is much lower than that in bacteria, detailed analysis of ppGpp in plants has not been performed. A highly sensitive quantification method is required for further characterization of ppGpp function in chloroplasts. Here, we report a new method that allows for the highly sensitive and selective high-throughput quantification of ppGpp by ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) coupled with a tandem quadrupole mass spectrometer (qMS/MS) equipped with an electrospray interface (ESI). This method requires only ~100 mg of plant tissue for ppGpp quantification. We used this method to measure ppGpp levels in Arabidopsis thaliana under different light conditions. A. thaliana accumulated ppGpp during dark periods. This method will be helpful to further characterize the stringent response in higher plants.

Overexpression of RelA/SpoT homologs, PpRSH2a and PpRSH2b, induces the growth suppression of the moss Physcomitrella patens

Two genes encoding RelA/SpoT homologs, PpRSH2a and PpRSH2b, which are involved in the synthesis of bacterial alarmone guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp) for the stringent response, were isolated from the moss, Physcomitrella patens. A complementary analysis of PpRSH2a and PpRSH2b in Escherichia coli showed that these genes had ppGpp biosynthetic activity. The recombinant PpRSH2a and PpRSH2b were also shown to synthesize ppGpp in vitro. Both proteins were localized to the chloroplasts of P. patens. Expression of the PpRSH genes was induced upon treatment with abscisic acid or abiotic stresses, such as dehydration and UV irradiation. Overexpression of PpRSH2a and PpRSH2b caused suppression of the growth in response to 1% (w/v) of glucose. The present study suggests the existence of a mechanism to regulate the growth of P. patens, which is governed by plant RSH in chloroplasts.

Calcium signaling in plant endosymbiotic organelles: mechanism and role in physiology

Recent studies have demonstrated that chloroplasts and mitochondria evoke specific Ca(2+) signals in response to biotic and abiotic stresses in a stress-dependent manner. The identification of Ca(2+) transporters and Ca(2+) signaling molecules in chloroplasts and mitochondria implies that they play roles in controlling not only intra-organellar functions, but also extra-organellar processes such as plant immunity and stress responses. It appears that organellar Ca(2+) signaling might be more important to plant cell functions than previously thought. This review briefly summarizes what is known about the molecular basis of Ca(2+) signaling in plant mitochondria and chloroplasts.

Diversity in guanosine 3',5'-bisdiphosphate (ppGpp) sensitivity among guanylate kinases of bacteria and plants

The guanosine 3',5'-bisdiphosphate (ppGpp) signaling system is shared by bacteria and plant chloroplasts, but its role in plants has remained unclear. Here we show that guanylate kinase (GK), a key enzyme in guanine nucleotide biosynthesis that catalyzes the conversion of GMP to GDP, is a target of regulation by ppGpp in chloroplasts of rice, pea, and Arabidopsis. Plants have two distinct types of GK that are localized to organelles (GKpm) or to the cytosol (GKc), with both enzymes being essential for growth and development. We found that the activity of rice GKpm in vitro was inhibited by ppGpp with a Ki of 2.8 μM relative to the substrate GMP, whereas the Km of this enzyme for GMP was 73 μM. The IC50 of ppGpp for GKpm was ∼10 μM. In contrast, the activity of rice GKc was insensitive to ppGpp, as was that of GK from bakers' yeast, which is also a cytosolic enzyme. These observations suggest that ppGpp plays a pivotal role in the regulation of GTP biosynthesis in chloroplasts through specific inhibition of GKpm activity, with the regulation of GTP biosynthesis in chloroplasts thus being independent of that in the cytosol. We also found that GKs of Escherichia coli and Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 are insensitive to ppGpp, in contrast to the ppGpp sensitivity of the Bacillus subtilis enzyme. Our biochemical characterization of GK enzymes has thus revealed a novel target of ppGpp in chloroplasts and has uncovered diversity among bacterial GKs with regard to regulation by ppGpp.

Biochemical analyses of ppGpp effect on adenylosuccinate synthetases, key enzymes in purine biosynthesis in rice

The ppGpp-signaling system functions in plant chloroplasts. In bacteria, a negative effect of ppGpp on adenylosuccinate synthetase (AdSS) has been suggested. Our biochemical analysis also revealed rice AdSS homologs are apparently sensitive to ppGpp. However, further investigation clarified that this phenomenon is cancelled by the high substrate affinity to the enzymes, leading to a limited effect of ppGpp on adenylosuccinate synthesis.

AtObgC-AtRSH1 interaction may play a vital role in stress response signal transduction in Arabidopsis

The interaction of Obg (Spo0B-associated GTP-binding protein) GTPase and SpoT, which is a bifunctional ppGpp (guanosine 3',5'-bispyrophosphate) hydrolase/synthetase, is vital for the modulation of intracellular ppGpp levels during bacterial responses to environmental cues. It has been recently reported that the ppGpp level is also inducible by various stresses in the chloroplasts of plant cells. However, the function of the Obg-SpoT interaction in plants remains elusive. The results from the present and previous studies suggest that AtRSH1 is a putative bacterial SpoT homolog in Arabidopsis and that its transcription levels are responsive to wounding and salt stresses. In this study, we used a yeast two-hybrid analysis to map the regions required for the AtObgC-AtRSH1 interaction. Moreover, protein-protein docking simulations revealed reasonable geometric and electrostatic complementarity in the binding surfaces of the two proteins. The data support our experimental results, which suggest that the conserved domains in AtObgC and the N terminus of AtRSH1 containing the TGS domain contribute to their interaction. In addition, quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analyses showed that the expression of AtObgC and AtRSH1 exhibit a similar inhibition pattern under wounding and salt-stress conditions, but the inhibition pattern was not greatly influenced by the presence or absence of light. Based on in vivo analyses, we further confirmed that the AtRSH1 and AtObgC proteins similarly localize in chloroplasts. Based on these results, we propose that the AtObgC-AtRSH1 interaction plays a vital role in ppGpp-mediated stress responses in chloroplasts.

The GreenCut: re-evaluation of physiological role of previously studied proteins and potential novel protein functions

Based on comparative genomics, a list of proteins present in the green algal, flowering and nonflowering plant lineages, but not detected in nonphotosynthetic organisms, was assembled (Merchant et al., Science 318:245-250, 2007; Karpowicz et al., J Biol Chem 286:21427-21439, 2011). This protein grouping, previously designated the GreenCut, was established using stringent comparative genomic criteria; they are those Chlamydomonas reinhardtii proteins with orthologs in Arabidopsis thaliana, Physcomitrella patens, Oryza sativa, Populus tricocarpa and at least one of the three Ostreococcus species with fully sequenced genomes, but not in bacteria, yeast, fungi or mammals. Many GreenCut proteins are also present in red algae and diatoms and a subset of 189 have been identified as encoded on nearly all cyanobacterial genomes. Of the current GreenCut proteins (597 in total), approximately half have been studied previously. The functions or activities of a number of these proteins have been deduced from phenotypic analyses of mutants (defective for genes encoding specific GreenCut proteins) of A. thaliana, and in many cases the assigned functions do not exist in C. reinhardtii. Therefore, precise physiological functions of several previously studied GreenCut proteins are still not clear. The GreenCut also contains a number of proteins with certain conserved domains. Three of the most highly conserved domains are the FK506 binding, cyclophilin and PAP fibrillin domains; most members of these gene families are not well characterized. In general, our analysis of the GreenCut indicates that many processes critical to green lineage organisms remain unstudied or poorly characterized. We have begun to examine the functions of some GreenCut proteins in detail. For example, our work on the CPLD38 protein has demonstrated that it has an essential role in photosynthetic function and the stability of the cytochrome b 6 f complex.

Enzymatic and molecular characterization of Arabidopsis ppGpp pyrophosphohydrolase, AtNUDX26

Not only in bacteria but also in plant cells, guanosine-3',5'-tetraphosphate (ppGpp) is an important signaling molecule, that affects various cellular processes. In this study, we identified nucleoside diphosphates linked to some moiety X (Nudix) hydrolases, AtNUDX11, 15, 25, and 26, having ppGpp pyrophosphohydrolase activity from Arabidopsis plants. Among these, AtNUDX26 localized in chloroplasts had the highest Vmax and kcat values, leading to high catalytic efficiency, kcat/Km. The activity of AtNUDX26 required Mg2+ or Mn2+ ions as cofactor and was optimal at pH 9.0 and 50 °C. The expression of AtNUDX26 and of ppGpp metabolism-associated genes was regulated by various types of stress, suggesting that AtNUDX26 regulates cellular ppGpp levels in response to stress and impacts gene expression in chloroplasts. This is the first report on the molecular properties of ppGpp pyrophosphohydrolases in plants.

Functional characterization of ObgC in ribosome biogenesis during chloroplast development

The Spo0B-associated GTP-binding protein (Obg) GTPase, essential for bacterial viability, is also conserved in eukaryotes, but its primary role in eukaryotes remains unknown. Here, our functional characterization of Arabidopsis and rice obgc mutants strongly underlines the evolutionarily conserved role of eukaryotic Obgs in organellar ribosome biogenesis. The mutants exhibited a chlorotic phenotype, caused by retarded chloroplast development. A plastid DNA macroarray revealed a plastid-encoded RNA polymerase (PEP) deficiency in an obgc mutant, caused by incompleteness of the PEP complex, as its western blot exhibited reduced levels of RpoA protein, a component of PEP. Plastid rRNA profiling indicated that plastid rRNA processing is defective in obgc mutants, probably resulting in impaired ribosome biogenesis and, in turn, in reduced levels of RpoA protein. RNA co-immunoprecipitation revealed that ObgC specifically co-precipitates with 23S rRNA in vivo. These findings indicate that ObgC functions primarily in plastid ribosome biogenesis during chloroplast development. Furthermore, complementation analysis can provide new insights into the functional modes of three ObgC domains, including the Obg fold, G domain and OCT.

Heterologous expression of a plant RelA-SpoT homologue results in increased stress tolerance in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by accumulation of the bacterial alarmone ppGpp

The bacterial alarmone ppGpp is present only in bacteria and the chloroplasts of plants, but not in mammalian cells or eukaryotic micro-organisms such as yeasts and fungi. The importance of the ppGpp signalling system in eukaryotes has therefore been largely overlooked. Here, we demonstrated that heterologous expression of a relA-spoT homologue (Sj-RSH) isolated from the halophilic plant Suaeda japonica in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae results in accumulation of ppGpp, accompanied by enhancement of tolerance against various stress stimuli, such as osmotic stress, ethanol, hydrogen peroxide, high temperature and freezing. Unlike bacterial ppGpp accumulation, ppGpp was accumulated in the early growth phase but not in the late growth phase. Moreover, nutritional downshift resulted in a decrease in ppGpp level, suggesting that the observed Sj-RSH activity to synthesize ppGpp is not starvation-dependent, contrary to our expectations based on bacteria. Accumulated ppGpp was found to be present solely in the cytosolic fraction and not in the mitochondrial fraction, perhaps reflecting the ribosome-independent ppGpp synthesis in S. cerevisiae cells. Unlike bacterial inosine monophosphate (IMP) dehydrogenases, the IMP dehydrogenase of S. cerevisiae was insensitive to ppGpp. Microarray analysis showed that ppGpp accumulation gave rise to marked changes in gene expression, with both upregulation and downregulation, including changes in mitochondrial gene expression. The most prominent upregulation (38-fold) was detected in the hypothetical gene YBR072C-A of unknown function, followed by many other known stress-responsive genes. S. cerevisiae may provide new opportunities to uncover and analyse the ppGpp signalling system in eukaryotic cells.

Cross-talk between calcium signalling and protein phosphorylation at the thylakoid

The role of protein phosphorylation for adjusting chloroplast functions to changing environmental needs is well established, whereas calcium signalling in the chloroplast is only recently becoming appreciated. The work presented here explores the potential cross-talk between calcium signalling and protein phosphorylation in chloroplasts and provides the first evidence for targets of calcium-dependent protein phosphorylation at the thylakoid membrane. Thylakoid proteins were screened for calcium-dependent phosphorylation by 2D gel electrophoresis combined with phospho-specific labelling and PsaN, CAS, and VAR1, among other proteins, were identified repeatedly by mass spectrometry. Subsequently their calcium-dependent phosphorylation was confirmed in kinase assays using the purified proteins and chloroplast extracts. This is the first report on the protein targets of calcium-dependent phosphorylation of thylakoid proteins and provides ground for further studies in this direction.

Plant organellar calcium signalling: an emerging field

This review provides a comprehensive overview of the established and emerging roles that organelles play in calcium signalling. The function of calcium as a secondary messenger in signal transduction networks is well documented in all eukaryotic organisms, but so far existing reviews have hardly addressed the role of organelles in calcium signalling, except for the nucleus. Therefore, a brief overview on the main calcium stores in plants-the vacuole, the endoplasmic reticulum, and the apoplast-is provided and knowledge on the regulation of calcium concentrations in different cellular compartments is summarized. The main focus of the review will be the calcium handling properties of chloroplasts, mitochondria, and peroxisomes. Recently, it became clear that these organelles not only undergo calcium regulation themselves, but are able to influence the Ca(2+) signalling pathways of the cytoplasm and the entire cell. Furthermore, the relevance of recent discoveries in the animal field for the regulation of organellar calcium signals will be discussed and conclusions will be drawn regarding potential homologous mechanisms in plant cells. Finally, a short overview on bacterial calcium signalling is included to provide some ideas on the question where this typically eukaryotic signalling mechanism could have originated from during evolution.

ppGpp inhibits peptide elongation cycle of chloroplast translation system in vitro

Chloroplasts possess common biosynthetic pathways for generating guanosine 3',5'-(bis)pyrophosphate (ppGpp) from GDP and ATP by RelA-SpoT homolog enzymes. To date, several hypothetical targets of ppGpp in chloroplasts have been suggested, but they remain largely unverified. In this study, we have investigated effects of ppGpp on translation apparatus in chloroplasts by developing in vitro protein synthesis system based on an extract of chloroplasts isolated from pea (Pisum sativum). The chloroplast extracts showed stable protein synthesis activity in vitro, and the activity was sensitive to various types of antibiotics. We have demonstrated that ppGpp inhibits the activity of chloroplast translation in dose-effective manner, as does the toxic nonhydrolyzable GTP analog guanosine 5'-(β,γ-imido)triphosphate (GDPNP). We further examined polyuridylic acid-directed polyphenylalanine synthesis as a measure of peptide elongation activity in the pea chloroplast extract. Both ppGpp and GDPNP as well as antibiotics, fusidic acid and thiostrepton, inhibited the peptide elongation cycle of the translation system, but GDP in the similar range of the tested ppGpp concentration did not affect the activity. Our results thus show that ppGpp directly affect the translation system of chloroplasts, as they do that of bacteria. We suggest that the role of the ppGpp signaling system in translation in bacteria is conserved in the translation system of chloroplasts.

Arabidopsis calcium-binding mitochondrial carrier proteins as potential facilitators of mitochondrial ATP-import and plastid SAM-import

Chloroplasts and mitochondria are central to crucial cellular processes in plants and contribute to a whole range of metabolic pathways. The use of calcium ions as a secondary messenger in and around organelles is increasingly appreciated as an important mediator of plant cell signaling, enabling plants to develop or to acclimatize to changing environmental conditions. Here, we have studied the four calcium-dependent mitochondrial carriers that are encoded in the Arabidopsis genome. An unknown substrate carrier, which was previously found to localize to chloroplasts, is proposed to present a calcium-dependent S-adenosyl methionine carrier. For three predicted ATP/phosphate carriers, we present experimental evidence that they can function as mitochondrial ATP-importers.

Signalling by the global regulatory molecule ppGpp in bacteria and chloroplasts of land plants

The hyperphosphorylated guanine ribonucleotide ppGpp mediates the stringent response in bacteria. Biochemical and genetic studies of this response in Escherichia coli have shown that the biosynthesis of ppGpp is catalysed by two homologous enzymes, RelA and SpoT. RelA is activated in response to amino acid starvation, and SpoT responds to abiotic physical stress beside nutritional stress. All free-living bacteria, including Gram-positive firmicutes, contain RelA-SpoT homologues (RSH). Further, novel ppGpp biosynthetic enzymes, designated small alarmone synthetases (SASs), were recently identified in a subset of bacteria, including the Gram-positive organism Bacillus subtilis, and were shown to consist only of a ppGpp synthetase domain. Studies suggest that these SAS proteins contribute to ppGpp signalling in response to stressful conditions in a manner distinct from that of RelA-SpoT enzymes. SAS proteins currently appear to always occur in addition to RSH enzymes in various combinations but never alone. RSHs have also been identified in chloroplasts, organelles of photosynthetic eukaryotes that originated from endosymbiotic photosynthetic bacteria. These chloroplast RSHs are exclusively encoded in nuclear DNA and targeted into chloroplasts. The findings suggest that ppGpp may regulate chloroplast functions similar to those regulated in bacteria, including transcription and translation. In addition, a novel ppGpp synthetase that is regulated by Ca²⁺ as a result of the presence of two EF-hand motifs at its COOH terminus was recently identified in chloroplasts of land plants. This finding indicates the existence of a direct connection between eukaryotic Ca²⁺ signalling and prokaryotic ppGpp signalling in chloroplasts. The new observations with regard to ppGpp signalling in land plants suggest that such signalling contributes to the regulation of a wider range of cellular functions than previously anticipated.

Function of plastid sigma factors in higher plants: regulation of gene expression or just preservation of constitutive transcription?

Plastid gene expression is rather complex. Transcription is performed by three different RNA polymerases, two of them are nucleus-encoded, monomeric, of the phage-type (named RPOTp and RPOTmp) and one of them is plastid-encoded, multimeric, of the eubacterial-type (named PEP). The activity of the eubacterial-type RNA polymerase is regulated by up to six nucleus-encoded transcription initiation factors of the sigma-type. This complexity of the plastid transcriptional apparatus is not yet well understood and raises the question of whether it is subject to any regulation or just ensures constitutive transcription of the plastid genome. On the other hand, considerable advances have been made during the last years elucidating the role of sigma factors for specific promoter recognition and selected transcription of some plastid genes. Sigma-interacting proteins have been identified and phosphorylation-dependent functional changes of sigma factors have been revealed. The present review aims to summarize these recent advances and to convince the reader that plastid gene expression is regulated on the transcriptional level by sigma factor action.

Versatile roles of plastids in plant growth and development

Plastids, found in plants and some parasites, are of endosymbiotic origin. The best-characterized plastid is the plant cell chloroplast. Plastids provide essential metabolic and signaling functions, such as the photosynthetic process in chloroplasts. However, the role of plastids is not limited to production of metabolites. Plastids affect numerous aspects of plant growth and development through biogenesis, varying functional states and metabolic activities. Examples include, but are not limited to, embryogenesis, leaf development, gravitropism, temperature response and plant-microbe interactions. In this review, we summarize the versatile roles of plastids in plant growth and development.

A metazoan ortholog of SpoT hydrolyzes ppGpp and functions in starvation responses

In nutrient-starved bacteria, RelA and SpoT proteins have key roles in reducing cell growth and overcoming stresses. Here we identify functional SpoT orthologs in metazoa (named Mesh1, encoded by HDDC3 in human and Q9VAM9 in Drosophila melanogaster) and reveal their structures and functions. Like the bacterial enzyme, Mesh1 proteins contain an active site for ppGpp hydrolysis and a conserved His-Asp-box motif for Mn(2+) binding. Consistent with these structural data, Mesh1 efficiently catalyzes hydrolysis of guanosine 3',5'-diphosphate (ppGpp) both in vitro and in vivo. Mesh1 also suppresses SpoT-deficient lethality and RelA-induced delayed cell growth in bacteria. Notably, deletion of Mesh1 (Q9VAM9) in Drosophila induces retarded body growth and impaired starvation resistance. Microarray analyses reveal that the amino acid-starved Mesh1 null mutant has highly downregulated DNA and protein synthesis-related genes and upregulated stress-responsible genes. These data suggest that metazoan SpoT orthologs have an evolutionarily conserved function in starvation responses.

Bacterial alarmone, guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), predominantly binds the beta' subunit of plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase in chloroplasts

It's alarming: Bacterial alarmone guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp), which is a key regulatory molecule that controls the stringent response, also exists in chloroplasts of plant cells. Cross-linking experiments with 6-thioguanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (6-thioppGpp) and chloroplast RNA polymerase indicate that ppGpp binds the beta' subunit of plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase that corresponds to the Escherichia coli beta' subunit. Chloroplasts, which are thought to have originated from cyanobacteria, have their own genetic system that is similar to that of the bacteria from which they were derived. Recently, bacterial alarmone guanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (ppGpp, 1), a key regulatory molecule that controls the stringent response, was identified in the chloroplasts of plant cells. Similar to its function in bacteria, ppGpp inhibits chloroplast RNA polymerase; this suggests that ppGpp mediates gene expression through the stringent response in chloroplasts. However, a detailed mechanism of ppGpp action in chloroplasts remains elusive. We synthesized 6-thioguanosine 5'-diphosphate 3'-diphosphate (6-thioppGpp) as a photoaffinity probe of ppGpp; this probe thus enabled the investigation of ppGpp binding to chloroplast RNA polymerase. We found that 6-thioppGpp, as well as ppGpp, inhibits chloroplast RNA synthesis in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. Cross-linking experiments with 6-thioppGpp and chloroplast RNA polymerase indicated that ppGpp binds the beta' subunit (corresponding to the Escherichia coli beta' subunit) of plastid-encoded plastid RNA polymerase composed of alpha, beta, beta', beta'', and sigma subunits. Furthermore, ppGpp did not inhibit transcription in plastid nucleoids prepared from tobacco BY-2 cells; this suggests that ppGpp does not inhibit nuclear-encoded plastid RNA polymerase.